Egypt imam criticizes listening to Quran in public

A top Egyptian scholar stirred controversy this week after he issued a fatwa restricting the places that Muslims can listen to the Quran, which had been vehemently rejected by the government in Cairo.

Sheikh Gamal Qutb, former head of the Fatwa Committee at the world's top Sunni institution al-Azhar, stated in an interview with a local paper that people should not listen to recitations of Islam's holy book while at work, on public transport or in stores.

"Listening to Quran in public and crowded places implies lack of respect," he said. "People who do that deal with Quran with carelessness"

Qutb argued that people who listen to the Quran while doing something else are not concentrating enough and may be distracted.

The fatwa, or religious edict, stirred much controversy among al-Azhar scholars and Egypt's Dar al-Iftaa, the government institution in charge of issuing fatwas, rebutted the fatwa.

Quran can be listened to at anytime and in any place, whether at work, on the road or on public transport, said Dr. Ahmed al-Sayeh, professor of theology at al-Azhar University.

"Listening to Quran in public places does not imply any carelessness," he told Al Arabiya. "On the contrary, those who do that honor the Quran to the extent that they need to listen to it everywhere."

Sayeh added that listening to Quran in public places is better than listening to music and added listening to the holy text frequently helps people learn it by heart.

Islamic preacher Khaled al-Beheiri argued that listening to Quran anywhere endows people with a state of spirituality and also helps them through the day and gives them good luck at work.

"As for Sheikh Qutb, he is one of the great scholars whose views cannot be overlooked, but this does not mean we have to accept this fatwa."

Despite the various objections the fatwa has met, Qutb still insists on his ruling.

"When the Quran is recited people should listen attentively," he told Al Arabiya. "Instead of paying attention to the words of the Quran and contemplating their meanings, they just play it and do not listen. Is this respect for the words of God?"

Qutb pointed out that people on public transport are usually exhausted and bored and are not paying attention to the deep meaning of words.



(Translated from Arabic by Sonia Farid)